Scottish Executive

Alcohol Misuse

Richard Lochhead (North East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what new steps are planned to tackle alcohol misuse.

Mr Tom McCabe: A great deal has been achieved since the Plan for Action on alcohol problems was published in 2002. Current action includes a national responsible drinking campaign targeting 18- to 25-year-olds and we will shortly be announcing additional resources for alcohol support and treatment services. We are about to begin a review of progress in delivering the Plan for Action and determine priorities for future action. We expect to complete this review by the end of April.

Cancer

Helen Eadie (Dunfermline East) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many cases of skin cancer have been treated by the photodynamic therapy unit at Ninewells Hospital, Dundee, and what percentage of those cases has been treated successfully.

Malcolm Chisholm: This is a matter for NHS Tayside as the information requested is not held centrally.

Civil Service

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what economic factors it takes into consideration when identifying sites for the relocation of civil service agency jobs outwith Edinburgh.

Tavish Scott: The Executive advises bodies carrying out relocation reviews that several socio-economic factors should be taken into consideration when carrying out the qualitative assessment of prospective locations. The factors include income and employment deprivation, health deprivation and disability, education, skills and training deprivation, and geographical access to services. We are currently considering the consistency of socio-economic statistics to be used by bodies in relocation reviews.

Civil Service

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether low pay in a particular area is taken into account when it identifies sites for the relocation of civil service agency jobs outwith Edinburgh.

Tavish Scott: The Executive advises bodies carrying out relocation reviews that low pay should be one of several socio-economic factors taken into account when carrying out the qualitative assessment of prospective locations.

Community Service Orders

Pauline McNeill (Glasgow Kelvin) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether community service orders as an alternative to custody have been effective in reducing crime.

Hugh Henry: The statistics suggest that offenders given community service orders generally have lower reconviction rates than those discharged from a custodial sentence, although this difference is less pronounced when the age and number of previous convictions of offenders are taken into account.

  The figures are in the Statistical Bulletin CrJ/2003/1 published in March 2003 which provides data on reconviction rates of offenders discharged from custody or given non-custodial sentenced in 1997. The statistical bulletin is available in the Parliament's Reference Centre (Bib. number 27185).

Crown Estate

Rob Gibson (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to seek the diversion for use in Scotland of current Crown Estate Commission income raised from Scottish sources.

Allan Wilson: The Executive has no plans to seek the diversion of current Crown Estate Commission income raised from Scottish sources, as the use of income raised by the Crown Estate is a reserved matter.

Debt Arrangement and Attachment (Scotland) Act 2002

Trish Godman (West Renfrewshire) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive in relation to Debt Arrangement and Attachment (Scotland) Act 2002, how many money advisers have been recruited, selected and trained and by whom they have been employed.

Ms Margaret Curran: In anticipation of the impact of the Debt Arrangement and Attachment (Scotland) Act 2002, the Scottish Executive has provided an additional £3 million per annum to boost the number of money advisers in Scotland. This funding was allocated via local authorities resulting in an extra 119 full-time equivalent trained money advisers, 66 of whom are based in local authorities and 53 in the voluntary sector.

Dentistry

John Farquhar Munro (Ross, Skye and Inverness West) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will make a commitment to a minimum accessibility target for NHS dentist provision in rural areas.

Mr Tom McCabe: The Executive is keen to ensure access to NHS general dental services for all those who wish them and for this reason I announced on 20 November 2003 a wide-ranging review of dental services in Scotland. Responses to the consultation document Modernising NHS dental services in Scotland have been sought by 5 March 2004. However, I am considering representations to extend this date. Implications for access will be one of the areas we will be examining further in the light of responses.

Development

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether further building development in Newtonmore, Kingussie, Boat of Garten and Nethybridge will be postponed for three years due to lack of capacity of the existing sewage works and, if so, what its position is on the matter.

Allan Wilson: Dealing with development constraints in specific locations is an operational matter for Scottish Water. These and other investment requirements, will be considered either in the current Quality and Standards II programme, or in the Quality and Standards III process now under way. Quality and Standards III will set out the future investment programme for the water industry and will be the subject of a full public consultation planned for July 2004.

Economy

Mike Watson (Glasgow Cathcart) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what the future is for Scotland's financial sector in general and fund asset management in particular.

Mr Jim Wallace: Scotland's financial services sector has demonstrated solid growth over the past decade and continues to perform robustly. Against the background of challenges from increased global competition, however, there is no room for complacency. The Scottish Executive recognises this and has responded to calls for a greater engagement with the sector by establishing the Financial Services Strategy Group (FSSG). The FSSG, which I chair, is charged with developing and delivering a long-term strategy in order to sustain and maximise the success of the sector as a whole, including fund management activities.

Fisheries

Trish Godman (West Renfrewshire) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what recent discussions have taken place with the Scottish Fisheries Protection Agency anent ordering replacement vessels for the agency's fleet.

Allan Wilson: The Scottish Fisheries Protection Agency is keeping Scottish ministers informed of progress in the appointment of a shipyard to construct a replacement for FPV SULISKER.

Flood Prevention

Trish Godman (West Renfrewshire) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what recent discussions have taken place with Renfrewshire Council regarding the funding and implementation of effective flood prevention schemes in Renfrewshire.

Allan Wilson: The Scottish Executive regularly discusses with Renfrewshire Council the implementation of its plans to reduce flood risk in Renfrewshire and associated funding needs. This close co-operation has allowed the council to construct three flood prevention schemes since 1999, more than any other council.

Food Standards

Mr Mark Ruskell (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive what levels of (a) dioxins, (b) polychlorinated biphenols, (c) toxaphene and (d) dieldrin were found in (i) farmed salmon, (ii) wild salmon and (iii) fish farming feedstuffs sampled by government agencies between 1990 and 2003.

Allan Wilson: This is a matter for the Food Standards Agency and industry trade associations. The information requested is not held centrally.

Health

Tricia Marwick (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when it last met Fife NHS Board.

Malcolm Chisholm: Officials of the Scottish Executive Health Department meet regularly with NHS boards and discuss a wide range of issues. The most recent meeting with Fife NHS Board took place on Friday 9 January 2004.

Heritage

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what representations it has made in respect of the renovation or restoration of Kinloch Castle on Rum; whether it has any plans to restore and preserve the castle and, if so, how the restoration will be funded; what information it has on the current estimated cost of restoration, and whether there has been any change in this cost, in light of the recommendations of the report by Page and Park architects, Conservation, Management and Business Plan Proposals relating to Proposals for Future of Kinloch Castle .

Allan Wilson: The Executive has made no such representations and has no such plans. Kinloch Castle is owned and managed by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) so this is an operational matter for SNH to take forward.

Housing

Dr Sylvia Jackson (Stirling) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what further steps it will take to increase the availability of affordable housing, particularly in rural areas.

Ms Margaret Curran: As announced at the end of last year, the Executive is engaging key stakeholders - local authorities, house builders, lenders, social landlords and other housing interests - in a new dialogue about affordable housing. This dialogue will consider over the next few months how best to ensure that affordable housing of the right size, type, tenure and quality is provided in the right places in future in both urban and rural areas.

  This initiative follows the Executive's announcement last October of an extra £10 million over the next two years to increase further the housing investment in rural areas through Communities Scotland, which this year (2003-04) stands at £59 million.

Housing

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many eviction applications were made by Glasgow City Council in each of the three years preceding the Glasgow housing stock transfer.

Ms Margaret Curran: The Scottish Executive currently collects information on the number of eviction actions taken against council tenants which proceeded to court, the number of cases which resulted in an eviction order and the number of cases which resulted in an eviction. This return only commenced in April 2001 and data are available for Glasgow City Council up to December 2002. Data on applications which did not result in a court case are not collected centrally.

  The data on evictions for each local authority are published quarterly in the Scottish Executive Statistical Bulletin (Housing Series) Housing Trends in Scotland. This is available online in the published data section of the Housing Statistics Branch reference site (http://www.scotland.gov.uk/stats/housing/hsbref), or from the SPICe library.

  For the financial year 2001-02, there were 2,779 actions taken which proceeded to court. For the last period during which Glasgow City Council submitted a return, which was April-December 2002, there were 1,787 eviction actions which proceeded to court.

Housing

Trish Godman (West Renfrewshire) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what funds are available for tenant and resident associations in areas of deprivation and low household incomes where such voluntary organisations seek to renovate local neighbourhoods and make them more secure.

Ms Margaret Curran: I have asked Angiolina Foster, Acting Chief Executive of Communities Scotland, to respond. Her reply is as follows:

  Direct funding for tenant and resident associations is the responsibility of individual landlords and should be identified within their tenant participation strategy. The Executive supports activities to empower tenants to develop their homes and communities, which includes the provision of a tenant participation team, based within Communities Scotland. Also, from April 2004 the Scottish Executive will introduce a national tenants grants scheme providing £400,000 over two years for registered tenant organisations to develop innovative and replicable approaches in tenant participation.

  The Social Inclusion Partnership Programme also provides £60 million in 2003-04 to tackle social exclusion and promote regeneration in disadvantaged communities across Scotland. Decisions on how the social inclusion partnership fund is allocated are taken locally and in Inverclyde, as in other areas, voluntary organisations may be able to access these funds. In addition, the Better Neighbourhoods Services Fund is providing £40 million in 2003-04 and £31.2 million in 2004-05 to improve services to disadvantaged communities in 12 Pathfinder areas across Scotland, including Inverclyde. Decisions on how funds are allocated are taken locally in line with the local outcome agreement approved by the Executive.

  If tenants and residents associations are working in partnership with a housing association to help them develop a wider role in regeneration they may also be able to access resources from Communities Scotland.

Justice

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much money has been collected under the Proceeds of Crime (Scotland) Act 1995 relating to drug offences in 2002-03 and 2003-04 to date.

Colin Boyd QC: During the financial year 2002-03 the sum of £472,449.54 was recovered following Confiscation Orders under the Proceeds of Crime (Scotland) Act 1995 in respect of drug offences. The sum of £825,262.54 has so far been collected during the financial year 2003-04.

Local Government Finance

Michael Matheson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive which local authorities provide rates relief to sports clubs and what funding has been allocated to local authorities to provide such rates relief in each of the last five years.

Mr Andy Kerr: Sports clubs may qualify for a number of rate reliefs such as mandatory charitable rate relief, and/or discretionary rate relief or small business rate relief. Only information relating to the amount of discretionary rate relief granted to sports clubs by each local authority is held centrally. The table below shows the amount of discretionary rate relief granted by each local authority to sports clubs in the last five years. The Executive funds 100% of any discretionary rate relief granted to sports clubs.

  Discretionary Relief for Sports Clubs: 1998-99 to 2002-03

  

 

1998-99

1999-2000

2000-01

2001-02

2002-03*



Aberdeen City

137,963

186,921

208,970

145,020

265,311



Aberdeenshire

454,998

457,548

524,103

570,105

605,328



Angus

140,252

150,026

170,652

180,148

192,560



Argyll and Bute

196,373

232,547

261,281

281,930

289,724



Clackmannanshire

25,301

29,157

29,643

30,189

31,517



Dumfries and Galloway

252,616

266,198

279,552

288,210

294,596



Dundee City

105,240

109,535

119,578

126,000

132,494



East Ayrshire

71,471

76,477

110,036

132,809

114,480



East Dunbartonshire

143,894

186,908

257,642

278,304

286,519



East Lothian

251,442

264,519

280,847

348,251

380,624



East Renfrewshire

153,906

154,842

158,757

179,198

180,967



Edinburgh, City of

726,318

751,327

810,044

841,948

859,368



Eilean Siar

22,485

27,511

29,463

31,251

37,231



Falkirk

42,214

46,286

49,791

50,433

73,615



Fife

287,627

295,251

280,373

330,908

333,193



Glasgow City

346,262

347,199

374,905

398,709

398,257



Highland

134,106

293,585

349,694

278,457

350,961



Inverclyde

65,454

68,302

71,517

76,634

75,910



Midlothian

122,443

128,192

145,410

140,136

147,284



Moray

208,942

221,165

238,088

254,226

263,391



North Ayrshire

131,597

137,715

156,694

155,642

173,570



North Lanarkshire

209,984

221,427

223,681

230,853

236,196



Orkney

14,444

18,396

20,334

22,264

24,466



Perth and Kinross

317,228

326,527

371,546

385,443

415,639



Renfrewshire

151,792

159,794

172,613

175,605*

182,374



Scottish Borders

295,274

303,100

313,132

326,816

339,291



Shetland

148,748

153,860

156,395

155,997

160,904



South Ayrshire

149,937

178,581

177,074

191,563

197,694



South Lanarkshire

220,899

224,236

252,217

261,439

268,259



Stirling

141,495

212,069

222,119

262,957

292,654



West Dunbartonshire

28,318

29,511

40,720

46,059

42,217



West Lothian

198,583

214,466

236,283

262,097

253,370



Scotland

5,897,606

6,473,178

7,093,154

7,439,601

7,899,964



  *Notified Amounts – figures which are in the process of being certified by the local authority auditors.

Maternity Services

Carolyn Leckie (Central Scotland) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the maximum acceptable transfer time is for a woman in labour moving from a midwife-led unit to a consultant-led unit.

Malcolm Chisholm: I refer the member to the answer given to question S2O-987 on 18 December 2003. All answers to parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

Ministerial Correspondence

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when the Minister for Environment and Rural Development will reply to the letter of 17 October 2003 from Alex Salmond MP regarding decommissioning offers.

Allan Wilson: Ross Finnie responded on 5 January.

National Health Service

Shona Robison (Dundee East) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it intends to take in response to concerns raised in the new report from the NHS Information and Statistics Division, Increasing emergency admissions among older people in Scotland.

Mr Tom McCabe: The report in question is a working paper commissioned some time ago from Information and Statistics Division by the Health Department. The department is reviewing the information presented in the paper. A number of actions to address the issues highlighted are already under way, both at departmental and NHS board/local authority level. Examples include use of joint NHS/social care rapid reaction teams to help organise care and treatment of elderly patients at home; and work being undertaken by the Centre for Change and Innovation on patterns of emergency NHS care. The overall aim is to ensure that patients are treated in the most suitable environment and experience the highest possible quality of care.

Nursing and Midwifery

Ms Wendy Alexander (Paisley North) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the number of qualified nurses and midwives in the Argyll and Clyde NHS Board area has increased since (a) 1997 and (b) 1999 and, if so, by how much.

Malcolm Chisholm: The following tables show the number of qualified nurses and midwives in the Argyll and Clyde NHS board the difference between the most recent figures (31 March 2003) and the figures from 1997 and 1999 (as at 30 September).

  Table 1a: Headcount and WTE of Qualified Nurses in the Argyll and Clyde NHS Board Area as at 30 Sept 1997 and 1999 and 31 March 2003.

  




1997 at 30 Sept

1999 at 30 Sept

2003 at 31 March

Difference Between 2003 and 1997

Difference between 2003 and 1999



WTE

2,343.6

2,376.9

2,607.9

264.3

231



Headcount

2,766

2,807

3,024

258

217



  Source: National Manpower Statistics from payroll ISD Scotland.

  1. Whole-time equivalent (WTE) adjusts the headcount to take account of part-time staff.

  2. WTE is calculated by dividing the contracted hours by the conditioned (normal) hours for the group staff.

  3. Prior to 2003 information was published annually at 30 Sept. From 2003, figures are published biannually - latest available are 31 March 2003.

  Table 1b: Headcount and WTE of Qualified Midwives in the Argyll and Clyde NHS Board Area as at 30 Sept 1997 and 1999 and 31 March 2003

  




1997 at 30 Sept

1999 at 30 Sept

2003 at 31 March

Difference Between 2003 and 1997

Difference between 2003 and 1999



WTE

265.3

260.6

246.8

-18.5

-13.8



Headcount

344

335

304

-40

-31



  Source: National Manpower Statistics from payroll. ISD Scotland

  1. Whole-time equivalent (WTE) adjusts the headcount to take account of part-time staff.

  2. WTE is calculated by dividing the contracted hours by the conditioned (normal) hours for the group staff.

  3. Prior to 2003 information was published annually at 30 Sept. From 2003, figures are published biannually - latest available are 31 March 2003.

Planning

Mike Rumbles (West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive when consultation on third-party rights of appeal in the planning system will commence.

Mrs Mary Mulligan: We will publish our consultation paper shortly.

Planning

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the granting of planning permission for wind farms is dependent on the provision of access to the transmission network.

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether local authorities can refuse planning permission for wind farms on the basis that the developer does not have access to the transmission network.

Mrs Mary Mulligan: No. Agreement to connect to the transmission network is a matter for operators and the owners of the grid.

Planning

Dr Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance it issues to local authorities in respect of notification to neighbours of amendments to planning applications that have still to be approved.

Mrs Mary Mulligan: Planning Advice Note 40: Development Control provides guidance to local authorities where the substance of an application is to be changed. Where such changes are proposed, a new application should be submitted to the planning authority and neighbour notification undertaken.

  This document can be viewed at www.scotland.gov.uk/planning .

Planning

Dr Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when each National Planning Policy Guideline was last reviewed and when each will be next reviewed.

Mrs Mary Mulligan: The Executive keeps National Planning Policy Guidelines (NPPGs) under review and revises them as appropriate. The response to the Review of Strategic Planning (published in June 2002), indicated our intention to rename National Planning Policy Guidelines as Scottish Planning Policies and to make them more concise and the policy content more explicit. The response also included an indicative programme for the review and updating of NPPGs and publication as Scottish Planning Policies (SPPs). This indicative programme is reproduced below. Publication dates indicate when each NPPG or SPP was last reviewed. Information is also given on current progress on the review and updating of particular NPPGs.

  Indicative Programme For Review Of Nppg Series

  2002:

  The Planning System – SPP 1 (published November 2000)

  Economic Development –SPP 2 (published November 2002)

  Planning for Housing – SPP 3 (published November 2003)

  West Edinburgh Planning Framework (published March 2003 – to be updated in the light of the recommendations in The Future of Air Transport published in December 2003)

  2003:

  Flooding – SPP 7 (to be published shortly)

  Opencast Coal - SPP 16 (published March 1999 - to be updated in the light of recent research to be published in February 2004)

  2004:

  Mineral Working – SPP 4 (published April 1994 - review commenced)

  Town Centres and Retailing – SPP 8 (published in October 1998 - to be reviewed in the light of recent research published in January 2004)

  Transport – SPP 17 incorporating The Provision of Roadside Facilities on Motorways and Other Trunk Roads (published in March 1996 and April 1999 - Draft SPP published January 2004)

  Rural Development – SPP 15 (draft SPP to be published shortly)

  2005:

  Built Heritage – SPP 5 replacing Archaeology (NPPG 5) and Historic Environment (NPPG 18) – published in January 1994 and April 1999

  Sport, Open Space and Recreation – SPP 11 – published in June 1996

  Green Belts – (Circular 24/1985 published in 1985)

  2006:

  Renewable Energy Developments –SPP 6 (published in November 2000)

  Planning and Waste Treatment – SPP 10 (published in March 1996)

  Radio Telecommunications – SPP 19 (published in July 2001)

  Natural Heritage – SPP 14 (published in January 1999)

  Coastal Planning –SPP 13 (published in August 1997)

Public Bodies

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that an area of special transport difficulties would be an appropriate location for its proposed national transport agency.

Tavish Scott: The location of the proposed national transport agency will be determined in accordance with the Scottish Executive's relocation policy, set out in parliamentary answer S2W-5401 and expanded upon by the Deputy Minister for Finance, Public Services and Parliamentary Business in his opening statement to the Finance Committee on 13 January 2004.

  Options will be analysed with a view to finding the best location for the agency. There will be opportunities for representations to be made about potential locations for the agency.

Public Safety

Margaret Smith (Edinburgh West) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to regulate the storage of gas cylinders on, and close to, domestic premises.

Mrs Mary Mulligan: Regulations are set out in Part F (Combustion appliance installations and Storage of liquid and gaseous fuels)  of the Technical Standards for compliance with the Building Standards (Scotland) Regulations 1990. These apply mandatory requirements for the construction of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) storage where:

  they are connected to an installation used for the purpose of providing space or water heating or cooking facilities in a building, and

  stored in a vessel with a storage capacity in excess of 150 litre (75kg)

  The general storage of LPG cylinders which are not connected to an installation is covered by Health and Safety legislation.

Radioactive Waste

Robin Harper (Lothians) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive whether any of the 12 locations outlined by Nirex in 1988-89 on its shortlist of possible sites for intermediate-level radioactive waste repositories are in Scotland and, if so, where.

Allan Wilson: This is a matter for Nirex.

Rail Network

Chris Ballance (South of Scotland) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive how its assessment of the business case for the Borders railway is progressing.

Tavish Scott: The initial business case was received on 4 November 2003. Following an initial analysis, further information was requested from the Waverley railway partnership. That information was received on 2 December 2003 and is now being considered.

Recycling

Ms Wendy Alexander (Paisley North) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what support it will offer for kerbside collections of recyclable material from domestic residences in Renfrewshire.

Allan Wilson: Renfrewshire Council has submitted an application for funding from the Strategic Waste Fund. It proposes kerbside collection schemes involving fortnightly collections of dry recyclables and green waste. In addition mini-recycling centres will be provided for flatted properties.

  The application for funding is currently being assessed.

Roads

Patrick Harvie (Glasgow) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive how many of the jobs created, or relocated, as a result of the M74 extension will be taken by currently unemployed residents in the Glasgow area.

Mr Jim Wallace: Twenty-five thousand jobs are expected to be created following completion of the M74. It is not possible to say how these jobs will be filled but the local authorities and local enterprise companies are taking steps to ensure that local residents are equipped with the skills to allow them to compete.

Salmon Farming

Richard Lochhead (North East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what its response is to the recent publicity concerning the reported level of pollutants found in farmed salmon following studies by north American scientists; what its position is in respect of the quality of Scottish farmed salmon; how it will publicise the Food Standards Agency's relevant advice on the matter, and what steps it will take to ensure that any concern amongst consumers that may exist over the quality of Scottish farmed salmon is addressed.

Allan Wilson: The Scottish Executive continues to have full confidence in the quality of Scottish farmed salmon products. This confidence is underpinned by advice from the Food Standards Agency (FSA), a body independent from government.

  The FSA has published its advice through a number of media notices. This advice is that Scottish farmed salmon meets the relevant food safety and health standards used in the UK, EU, World Health Organisation and indeed the US for the substances covered in the US scientific report.

  Further, the FSA actively promotes advice to consumers that it is beneficial for them to consume at least two portions of fish per week, one of which should be oily (such as salmon).

Smoking

Mr Stewart Maxwell (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what immediate measures it is taking to lower the number of smoke-related deaths.

Mr Tom McCabe: On 13 January the Scottish Executive launched A Breath of Fresh Air for Scotland, the first ever action plan on tobacco control designed specifically for Scotland. The plan sets out a range of action in the areas of prevention and education, a further £4 million in 2005-06 for the expansion of quality smoking cessation services and control measures to reduce the availability of cigarettes to under 16s. It also sets out further actions needed to tackle the issue of passive smoking and commits the Executive to undertake a wide-ranging public debate on smoking in public places later this year.

Sustainable Development

George Lyon (Argyll and Bute) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it will take to help support a sustainable future for the island of Tiree.

Allan Wilson: The Scottish Executive is committed to ensuring a sustainable future for all of our communities – including rural and island communities like Tiree. Our statement, Rural Scotland: A New Approach , published in May 2000, set out our vision for the type of rural Scotland we aspire to and our partnership agreement sets out a range of specific commitments that seek to turn that vision into a reality.

UK Legislation

Michael Matheson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with Her Majesty's Government in respect of the introduction of 80% mandatory rates relief for community amateur sports clubs and what the cost would be of the introduction of such a scheme in Scotland.

Mr Andy Kerr: Scottish Executive officials are in regular contact with officials from the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. The additional cost of introducing 80% mandatory rate relief for community amateur sports clubs is estimated to be in the region of £1 million.

Waste Management

Alex Johnstone (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-4279 by Allan Wilson on 5 December 2003, whether it has undertaken any research into the efficiency and safety of sophisticated small commercial waste oil burners used in the United States of America.

Alex Johnstone (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what investigation it made into modern small waste oil burner technology before making the Waste Incineration (Scotland) Regulations 2003.

Allan Wilson: The Executive has not undertaken research into the efficiency and safety of small waste oil burners. Primary responsibility for ensuring that incinerators comply with the Waste Incineration (Scotland) Regulations 2003 lies with operators and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA). SEPA would only authorise their use if they complied fully with the regulations.

Water Charges

Mrs Margaret Ewing (Moray) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will extend its current water and sewerage transitional scheme in scale, scope and time beyond March 2004.

Allan Wilson: The Executive is assessing the impact that ending the current Water and Sewerage Charges Reduction Scheme will have in light of the harmonisation of charges. A decision on whether any further action is required will be made in light of this assessment.

Water Charges

Mrs Margaret Ewing (Moray) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what its position is on transferring responsibility for the collection of water and sewerage charges to Scottish Water.

Allan Wilson: The responsibility for the collection of water and sewerage charges falls to local authorities as specified under the terms of The Water Services Charges (Billing and Collection) (Scotland) Order 2002. This order is due to expire on 31 March 2005. A public consultation on proposals for a new order will be issued in spring 2004.

Water Charges

Mrs Margaret Ewing (Moray) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the impact on Band B households should the Transitional Water and Waste Water Charges scheme end in March 2004.

Allan Wilson: The Executive is currently assessing the impact that ending the current Water and Sewerage Charges Reduction Scheme will have in light of harmonisation of charges. This includes looking at the impact on Band B households. A decision on whether any further action is required will be made in light of this assessment.